Monday, May 24, 2010

Next week is the Canadian RN Exam. Hopefully, many of you have been studying hard and feeling somewhat ready to write the exam. I'm sure many of you are searching everywhere for some practice questions so let's try one:

1. The nurse has hung one unit of packed red blood cells after performing all the necessary safety checks. The nurse is assessing for signs/symptoms of an acute transfusion reaction which include:

1. Hypothermia

2. Epistaxis

3. Nausea

4. Pruritus

Remember that when writing a multiple choice exam it is important to read the stem of the question twice and all your options twice. Let's breakdown the question by looking at the different options.

1. Hypothermia: this answer is incorrect because in an acute transfusion reaction one of the most common reactions is high fever (hyperthermia)

2. Epistaxis: a nose bleed does not occur

3. Nausea: this is not a sign/symptom of an acute reaction

4. Pruritus: itchiness is a common reaction in an acute reaction.

Other common reactions include fever, chills, or urticaria. Other signs occurring in a blood transfusion include severe shortness of breath, red urine and loss of consciousness may be the first indication of a more severe potentially fatal reaction.

Now, what would be the nurses course of action in the above situation? Write down the nursing interventions for this scenario and prioritize them. Later in the week we will examine these nursing actions.

In the meantime if any of you would like to try more CRNE style questions please visit our website at www.primededucation.ca and on the home page click on the CRNE style testing centre. For $55 dollars you will receive two attempts at 200 questions.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Are you tired of going over and over the CNA's red book for CRNE prep?
Are you finding that you have now memorized the answers to the questions?

Do you want some different questions to try?
If so, try PRIMED's 200 question mock CRNE style exam. For $55 you will have two attempts at practicing CRNE style questions. After you submit your quiz it will be automatically marked and give you a percentage. Then take some time to work on your areas for improvement. Then for your second attempt at the quiz we suggest simulating test day. Get up at the time you will need to for the exam get ready and sit down for the full four hours. Turn off you phone and any other distraction to try and simulate test day as much as possible.

Visit www.primededucation.ca and click on the button that says "CRNE style testing centre" in the top right hand corner. You need to have a PayPal account set up to transfer the funds. If you don't have one set up it just takes a few minutes. PayPal keep close track of all its products so you can rest assured you will not have any difficulties accessing the quiz.

Monday, May 10, 2010

PRIMED is pleased to announce the Canadian Registered Nurses Exam (CRNE) prep workshop that was held in Vancouver May 8-9 at St. Paul's Hospital was a success!

The weekend was packed full of review of different nursing topics such as community health, cardiac, maternity etc. After reviewing the theory in each section, students had the opportunity to practice CRNE style questions. In total students practiced more than 200 questions over the 2 day workshop, which not only tested their knowledge of the content, but also familiarized them with the style of question they will see on the CRNE.

Students told us after they completed the workshop they felt more confident and ready to take the exam. Students will now continue to study but they also know that PRIMED is available to provide ongoing support to them until they write their exam in June.

Stay tuned for some CRNE style practice questions.
Also, please visit our website at www.primededucation.ca where you can practice a mock CRNE exam with 200 questions twice for $55.

Register now for a review session

About PRIMED

PRIMED Educational Associates offers two-day intensive courses to help nursing graduates and international nurses prepare for the NCLEX. If you would like to sign up, register here today: www.primededucation.ca